"The joy of music should never be interrupted by a commercial."
- Leonard Bernstein Most of you know how much I love that quote, and I tend to use it differently from what the "maestro" probably ever had in mind :-) Keeping that quote in mind, on Thursday I visited the Children's Cancer Association (CCA) in Portland, OR. The CCA has many different programs that ultimately serve the same purpose:
When seriously ill children, teens, and their families need more than medicine, CCA's innovative programs create joy one moment at a time.
For the music related programs, their purpose is not about music therapy but simply about the joy of music. One of their programs, which of course is what led me to them, is called MusicRx. Some of you may even remember when I first found them - it was day 32 of my 37 days of giving (and we all helped them again during a previous challenge where I donated five musical instruments because of your support!). So on Thursday I had the utmost pleasure of meeting some of the amazing people who work at the CCA. There I learned about what makes their programs so special. One of the things I absolutely loved was hearing about how MusicRx works in the hospitals. They have these carts that their music volunteers roll around to kids' hospital rooms which are loaded with various musical instruments and technologies. These carts allow the kids to listen to music, play music, and even record their own music that they can keep. The music volunteers are there to either help the patients learn how to play music, or simply just experience music for the pure joy of it <3 You should definitely take a look at their site to learn even more about the other wonderful programs the CCA offers (and the many different ways you can help them help cancer patients and their families experience joy). For my part, I donated additional musical instruments for their MusicRx program. I was also very excited to learn that the CCA is also looking to roll out their programs to other hospitals nationwide, and hopefully this is something I may even be able to help with at a certain hospital in New York City! Watch this space ;-)
"Building community through arts one experience at a time." Sometimes, and this is a good thing, you have no idea just how profoundly an experience is going to impact you. On Wednesday I was in Seattle, WA and I visited an organization called Community Arts Create (CAC). There I met Ben Hunter, the founder and Director of CAC. If I had just 1/37th of Ben's drive, passion and commitment, I would be extremely lucky. Let me tell you why :-) First let me borrow (and paraphrase) from CAC's site:
Mission
CAC strives to build community through self-discovery and shared experience. We work to enhance a richer way of life by creating harmony through creative expression within Seattle’s very diverse culture. Simply put, CAC partners with the community to create cultural competency through art of all forms.
Our Approach
We hope to help Southeast Seattle express their artistic identity through programs, exhibitions, performances and art installations. We foster values intrinsic to art and artists: collaboration, patience, sensitivity, and the celebration of the collective achievement. CAC strives to be the unifying agent, using art as the vehicle for cultural integration and, ultimately, cultural acceptance.
When I first discovered CAC online, I read these words and was immediately drawn towards this organization. But when I met and talked to Ben, I learned that these simple words actually represent something much more rich, nuanced and diverse. There is one word, which I have highlighted, that really speaks to what this organization is all about - community. As my journey of giving has been progressing, I have started to write about what it has become to mean to me. A large part of what I have been learning and experiencing has formed a concept and idea in my mind that I said I would share with you one day. Since my journey has a long way to go yet, I will continue to tease you with what that is (but "community" is a big hint). After all, I need to save something for the epilogue ;-) Let me not start a tangent and instead return to CAC. There have been a few occasions where I have stated that you can read about an organization online yet only truly know a small fraction of what that organization actually does. CAC is no exception to this (and this is exactly what makes my travels so rewarding). Ben met me at the train stop and then walked me through the community CAC supports. He proceeded to tell me about the impact CAC has made in its community through the various experiences it has offered (and continues to offer). And it is not just about the arts! CAC is not just focused on one thing but instead they do anything that has a positive community impact.
Ben and I ended our walk by arriving at CAC's new home. It is a shared space that is there to serve the community in many ways. One such example is that the space is open for a few hours during the day to support the homeless. Ben also showed me a garden space out back that CAC is going to start to develop in to a community garden, and a general place for people in the community to simply gather and enjoy a green space. I could go on and on about all of the things CAC does to support its community. I started this post by saying that if I had just 1/37th of Ben's drive, passion and commitment, I would be extremely lucky. Now you know why, and I am definitely inspired!
Here is a mural that CAC got local businesses in the community to sponsor in order to freshen up a blighted wall and area.
I told Ben that the last panel could very well represent the vision of what CAC's community garden may become :-)
Finally, in terms of my donation, CAC received a digital camera to take the place of Ben using his phone to take all of their pictures.
For the tenth state on my journey of giving, I visited two different organizations based in Los Angeles, CA. The theme for this day centered around the word "opportunity"... DSTL Arts The Arts Empowerment Project connected me to DSTL Arts (pronounced like "distill", and it stands for "develop skills, transcend limits") through Twitter. I had already made contact with another organization in CA whom I was going to visit (you will see that below), but after reading about DSTL Arts I knew I wanted to do something with them too. Everything then just came together perfectly and I was able to add this little sojourn to my trip :-) On Tuesday I visited DSTL Arts and there I met Luis and Ana. Luis is the founder and Executive Director of DSTL Arts while Ana is one of his mentees. DSTL Arts mentors young artists (at-risk youth ages 16–21 years old) to give them the opportunity to be working artists. Think about how simple yet powerful that premise is of nurturing talent and entrepreneurship for those that would not likely have such a chance. When the right conditions and circumstances exist, not only do the individuals benefit but then so do the communities in which they live and work. We as a society need more talented and wonderful people like Luis who have a vision of changing the way we think about education and the arts! Normally I make an in-kind donation as part of my journey of giving. As I browsed through the DSTL Arts site I came across their shop where students have the opportunity to sell their work. One of the pieces of work that caught my eye is called El Festival and this was done by Ana. That then gave me an idea which at first I was not even sure DSTL Arts would accept. I asked Luis if I could commission Ana to create an original work of art for me. They both agreed and here is a picture of Ana and her work of art she created based on the idea of 37 people can't be wrong. Needless to say, I was at a loss for words when this was presented to me (Ana - I may have struggled to say much when you gave this to me but please do know how truly happy it made me feel, and how much I love and treasure what you created for me!).
Also here is a great video of Ana explaining DSTL Arts.
Everybody Deserves Music Later that Tuesday afternoon I stopped by the Los Angeles Leadership Academy Middle School. This charter school does not offer any music classes for its students. This is where the aptly named Everybody Deserves Music works to give these kids the opportunity to learn music. Everybody Deserves Music is there after school every single day to ensure that at least some of these students, kids who express an interest in learning music, are given that chance. If you have been reading my blog and the other places I have visited on my journey of giving, I am typically quite positive and upbeat about the people and organizations I have met. Before I arrived at this school, I assumed that Everybody Deserves Music acted as a compliment to an existing school music program (like some of the other music programs I have visited). I only learned while I was there that this school does not have any music program or music teachers. That saddened me. It also saddened me to learn that Everybody Deserves Music receives little in the form of grants and that most donations come from individual donors (or the program volunteers donate their own instruments). In fact the way I found Everybody Deserves Music was through their Amazon.com wish list. Despite all of this, Everybody Deserves Music heroically does what it can with what it has. Resources may be limited but they certainly make the most of what they have. And it is not just about music instruction. They also offer tutoring for students who need a little extra help. So just when you think a few instruments, a few dedicated volunteers, and probably the smallest music room I have ever seen cannot go very far to make a difference, you would be sadly mistaken to underestimate Everybody Deserves Music :-) In terms of my donation, I was able to provide an electric guitar (and from what I hear, a very popular instrument amongst the kids) which also helped support the Traveling Guitar Foundation (thank you TGF for sending this guitar to Everybody Deserves Music!).
